BRANSON, Mo. -- Police detectives say a woman's death on Sunday in a hotel is a homicide. A maid found the 63-year-old woman's body in her room. Police say it appears the woman had been dead for more than two days.
Investigators say her husband is a person of interest in her death. Police did not release either name at a news conference on Monday morning, as they work to notify family. An autopsy is being performed Monday, but police are not releasing the cause of death at this time, saying it's an important part of the investigation.
Police say the couple from California checked into the Ramada Inn on Thursday and were scheduled to check out Sunday. The couple had recently moved to the area from southern California. Investigators say no one inside the hotel heard or saw anything suspicious related to the death.
Police are looking for a blue Dodge Durango (like the one in the photo) with California license plate 5WRF678. Branson Police Chief Kent Crutcher says, "We hope to contact family members and friends from where they're from, learn more about them. Obviously our goal is to locate the husband, not knowing if he's involved or if he's a victim himself is something we have to sort through and determine. It's too early at this point to make any judgments about that."
Anyone with information about this death or the Durango can call Detective Sean Barnwell at (417) 337-8593.Branson's last three homicide investigations, in 2007, 2008 and 2010 were all at motels.
